Never Forget
by Super-Sonic-101
Summary: Jace and Iris, having argued the night before, have a rough start to their morning. Iris deeply upset, Jace tries explaining to her why he had done what he'd done. Iris eventually starts listening, leading to a flash back of events in Jace's young life with his beloved father. And Jace now old enough, begins to understand his father's mourning pain...


Jace scratched the back of his head, as he sat up out of bed. He looked over, realizing Iris never came back to bed last night. He thought she'd get over the argument they had last night and come lay down, but she must not have. He sat up with a groan, before getting out of bed slowly, he wasn't prepared for what heck would break loose when he tried talking to her again. The cavern house really didn't have many rooms, so he really didn't have to look very far to find her. He walked into the den, hoping she was actually alright. She laid there on the couch on her side with a blanket lazily thrown over her.  
Jace sighed "Iris, I wish you would've come back to bed..."  
"Don't even talk to me..." She growled.  
Jace blinked, feeling burned. "Geez, can't we just kiss and make up?"  
"What did I just say?" She turned over half way, glancing at him.  
"Well, I know, you told me to-"  
"Just shut it." Iris turned back over.

Jace paused, then was about to speak, but stopped himself... "..." He walked away and into the kitchen. He looked through the shelf for a moment silently, before speaking "Are you hungr-"  
"No." She quickly answered. She finally got up, and walked to the kitchen to grab some water "I'll pass on breakfast..."  
"Heheh, well technically, you didn't pass on breakfast since you're drinking something. Y'know, Deku don't _need_ to eat to get their fill. Water itself can be enough to give a Deku enough energy for the day."  
"Now did I ask you?" Iris glared at him.  
Jace chuckled nervously, before looking down. "... Please, I don't want to argue anymore... Why're you so mad still?"  
"..." Iris stopped herself upon leaving the kitchen, then turned. "Excuse me?" she turned to him "I have every right to be mad! You bailed on our date yesterday, and left me waiting there!"  
"..." Jace listened quietly and guiltily, refusing to argue back. Instead, he just let her talk.  
"And you've known me this long, I'm surprised you're assuming I'm angry! I'm not angry, I'm _hurt!_" Her eyes watered at the end of her outburst. "I'd been looking forward to that for so long and you promised, and then you throw it all away you jerk!"  
Jace jumped, now feeling worse. "I-Iris, please listen to me, I'm sorry, I just-"  
Iris walked out crying, then as Jace tried following, Iris had unintentionally slammed the door in his face. He silently lowered his hand, before a sound caught his attention. He looked over at his old and tattered calendar when the slam of the door had knocked it down. He sighed as he bent down to pick it up. Before he could pin it back on the wall, he looked at the date. A deeply saddened look took to his face when he saw where Iris had written the date for their date. He then looked at today's date, and realized something else he'd shamefully forgotten... "Oh my-..." Jace muttered. He then put his face in his palm, and shook his head "I'm such an idiot..." He spoke lowly. He looked back to the door, as he heard Iris sniffle. He scratched his arm, and opened the door.

She didn't look at him. To keep from making her burst out at him again, he never spoke. He sat down next to her silently, and rubbed her back. "... I'm sorry, really I am."  
"Then why did you forget about me...?" She sniffled.  
"... I never forgot you, but I did forget about the date. I came home, and thought maybe you were out hanging with Rosana. I thought the date was today, but now I remember what today was."  
"We didn't have anything planned today..." Iris grumbled.  
"I did, for a long time." He looked at the calendar in his hands. Iris turned, wiping a falling tear from her face. She looked at the calendar.  
Jace looked a little sad "Today was my mom's birthday..."  
"..." Iris turned to him.  
"My dad and I started bringing her things back when he was still alive, and decided to do it every year."

"How did you bring her things? I thought your mother died before you were old enough to remember her?"  
"She did, she died of a sickness. But that didn't stop young me at the age of five to come up with an idea of bringing her gifts to her grave." Jace stopped for a moment, then continued "It started on this exact day..."

* * *

Jace ran and ran looking for his father, then saw his father in the den. His face lit up "Pappa, are we training today?" He asked. The eager child then looked at the sword in his father's hands.  
His father glanced at him, then spoke "No."  
"Then... Why are you holding that sword?" He asked slowly, trying to pronounce his words fluently. He was always told he spoke too fast.  
"I don't fight with this, this was just a gift from your-..." He stopped himself.  
"From my...?" He tilted his head.  
Geroh, Jace's father, looked down at the little boy, then placed a fake smile on. "Jacon, you're gonna spend today with Aunt Acacia, okay?"  
"Awww, but why?" He moaned "I wanna be with you!"  
Geroh sighed, "Well, daddy's not feeling well today. He's got some things to do..."  
"..." Jace looked down sadly. Geroh looked at the boy's mopey face, then groaned. "This... This was a gift to me from your mother back before you were born."  
"Huh? It was?" Jace spoke curiously as he looked over it.  
"Yeah..." He paused, before continuing "She-... Today was her birthday."  
Jace perked up "Really? Why don't we get her something?"  
Geroh chuckled a pained chuckle "Well, I wish that was possible... But she's gone. You can't give someone something if they aren't there anymore."  
Jace just looked at Geroh with a raised eyebrow "But she's not gone. Aunt Acacia says so."  
Geroh was hurting at having to explain to Jace that her having died, she can't be there. It pained him every year when her birthday rolled around, he wished Jace would quit talking about it "Jace-, yes-, but... You're too young to understand..." He stood up, placing the sword on it's mantle on the wall  
"No, no! Acacia says she's with us everyday, she never left!" Jace smiled.

Geroh suddenly looked to Jace, when the little eager child grabbed his father's hand. Geroh looked down into Jace's eyes, seeing not only a reflection of himself, but a reflection of Everin as well. The very memory played in his head of Everin telling Geroh that even when she's gone, he'll have a piece of her so long as Jace is there. He remembered her saying Jace is the very proof of Everin and Geroh's success and survival, and that so long as Jace lives and carries the bloodline, that she or Geroh will never die... Geroh blinked at the boy as a smile slowly creased the healing-father's face, of which only another Deku would notice. He rubbed Jace's head and said "Y'know, you're a very smart kid..."

Jace giggled, before saying "What does mommy like?"  
"Um... Well, you're mother used to love-... I mean, you mother _does_ love flowers. She also loves music." He sighed, hiding the pain in his heart.  
Jace pondered for a moment "Uhh, I dunno how to make music..." He looked around, before jumping "But I can pick flowers!" Jace ran outside before Geroh could say a word. Geroh slowly pulled his outreached hand back as he watched Jace's little feat take him outside. Geroh looked at the sword on the wall, and had realized that the only way to truly give her anything would be to visit her grave. But he hadn't been to her grave since her funeral, for it hurt him too much. But he couldn't keep his only son away from her, he felt it was selfish of him to hide her from him only because of fear of his own heart's pain. Besides, Geroh wanted Jace to know his mother. "I'm sorry, Everin." he sighed "Forgive me for not ever visiting, but you understand, right? Today I'm making a change, you wouldn't have wanted me hiding from my own son. I'll let him know who you were and how sweet you were." He stopped himself, then smiled at remembering what Jace said "Sorry... I mean, how sweet you _are_."

Geroh walked outside, but didn't see his son anywhere. "... Jacon?" He walked around, before eventually walking back through to the village. Jace eventually ran back to and found Geroh, holding a huge bouquet of flowers...  
"Jace, where did you find those...?"  
"At the palace!"  
Geroh went wide eyed "Jacon, you can't be picking from the Palace gardens!"  
"But no one saw me." He giggled.  
Geroh shook his head and laughed "Well, I know Acacia wouldn't have minded, but the guards and King would."  
Jace giggled again "I'm sorry, I'll ask next time."  
Geroh rubbed Jace's head, messing up his leaves. Jace shook his head to make his leaves fall back into place. "Do we need anything else...?"Jace asked eagerly.  
Geroh thought for a moment, then answered "No, I don't believe so..."  
"Okay!" Jace began running forward, but stopped abruptly. "Wait... How do I give her these...?"

Geroh smiled at Jace, and finally said "I'll take you... C'mon." He grabbed Jace's little hand, and began leading him away from the village. He was taking Jace somewhere he'd never been. The little boy wowed in awe at all the grown over plants on this trail. Jace eventually looked puzzled when Geroh finally came to a stop. Jace looked to his father, expecting him to say "_We're here!_" excitedly, but Geroh had a look on his face that Jace didn't understand, that he didn't yet know how to read as _fear_ or _hurt_... At least, at such a moment that Jace didn't understand that was sad. Jace seemed pretty happy, so why did Geroh have a reason to be sad? The little boy didn't understand at his age. Geroh took a deep breath as he stood before a wall of vines. He closed his eyes tightly, before finally masking his face with a fake smile and saying "Alright, we're here." in a very sad manner that didn't match his expression.  
Jace looked around "... Where?"  
Geroh walked him through the vines, to see an area grown over abundantly in bright green foliage. Vines hung from the tall tree at the center of it all. But the vines were so overgrown, they canopied the tree, where under the tree almost looked like a house, where the vines shaded everything from the sun. A small swamp water river ran through the area and around the tree. Jace wowed again "This is cool!"

Geroh looked around. It had been a while since he'd been here, but it only looked more beautiful with everything grown over. Long before Jace ever was, Geroh and Everin would come here. Back then, they were the only ones who knew the place existed. But Everin said before she had died, that she wanted this to be her resting place, so the last time Geroh ever came here to see her, was when the royal family had buried her here four years ago... Geroh walked to the tombstone standing at the base of the tree, as he let Jace's hand go slowly. Jace watched his father, then followed. Geroh and Jace looked down at the tombstone in silence, before Jace broke the silence "Is this where mommy's sleeping?"  
It felt like needles in his heart when Jace said that... But he answered "Yes it is..."  
Jace looked around "Hehe, it looks like someone already threw her a party." Jace looked around at the vines, and he imagined them as streamers. Fruit hung from the tree, looking like colorful decorations. It reminded Jace of how the Deku village looked during a festival. Geroh didn't notice before, but Jace's imagination opened his eyes a little.  
"You're certainly right. I guess nature was way ahead of us, huh?" He laughed faintly.

Jace looked down at the gravestone, and laid the flowers down in front of it. "I brought these for you, mommy! I hope you like them!" Jace smiled silently.  
Geroh finally turned his face away a little, as he closed his eyes. A drop of something landed on a flower's petal. Jace noticed the drop, and looked up to see where it came from. He didn't see any water in the tree. He finally noticed the wet stream on Geroh's face when another fell. Geroh felt a tug on his vest, then looked down at Jace. Jace looked up intently and sadly at Geroh "Pappa, why are you crying?"  
"..." He looked at Jace's innocent form. Jace couldn't possibly understand the deep memories and feelings flowing through Geroh's mind at that moment, and Jace wouldn't understand them if Geroh tried explaining. Jace doesn't even remember Everin, so he never knew her well. He didn't know how to answer him.

"I... Just miss her..." He softly caressed Jace's leaves. "And I know, she's not gone... But I wish I could see her."  
"Oh..." Jace looked down at the grave. "But please don't cry..."  
Geroh sniffled. "Y'know what... There's no shame in crying... Even grown men cry, Jace. And someday when you're a grown man, you'll understand how deep your emotions can go when you care about someone. Besides, these aren't tears of sadness, these are just tears of happiness..."  
"... How can tears be happy?" Jace raised an eyebrow.  
Geroh sighed at more questions. "Well... When you remember something happy or joyful, and it makes you cry. You're not crying because it was sad, you're crying because it was beautiful."  
"I didn't know that..." Jace answered.  
"Like I said... When you're a grown man who has explored his heart more, you'll understand exactly what I'm talking about. But for now, I don't want you worrying about it."  
Jace was still curious, but answered "Okay..."  
"But when you are a grown man, just know that crying doesn't make you weak. It proves your strength and shows you have a heart. You're a good boy, and I'm sure you'll be a great man..." He smiled proudly at Jace, as he wiped his face.  
Jace smiled at Geroh, feeling happy that his father isn't sad.

"Happy birthday, Everin..." Geroh said "I love you."  
Jace asked "Can we visit here more often, pappa? It's so pretty here!"  
"..." Geroh drew a breath "Of course... I think you're mother would like that."  
"Yay!" Jace jumped "Thank you!" He looked at the grave "Happy birthday, mommy…~"  
"..." Geroh looked up, seeing a little peak of the sun through the vines. It was getting late, and it got dangerous in these parts of the forest at night sometimes. "Alright, Jacon. Let's go home."  
"Aw... Okay..." Jace pouted a little "..."  
Geroh's leaves drooped a little, before saying "We'll come by again."  
"Alright!" Jace instantly perked up. He took his father's hand and began walking away. During the walk, he finally said "Can we bring her flowers every year?"  
Geroh looked down to Jace, and smiled. His eyes watered "Of course..." 

* * *

Jace, as the young man he is now, stared intently at the calendar "I haven't visited her grave in a while, because my dad was buried there next to her..." He paused, feeling ashamed "I did for a few years after he died, but I eventually set off on my own to look for the cure of my curse. I guess those years of dwelling on my curse, I dwelled on the memories of my dad. I cherished the day we visited her grave, but as I myself grew older, it saddened me to dwell on those memories that I'll never relive again."  
Iris looked down sadly, but listened.

"My dad never lived to do that with me again. By the next year, the curse took his life before her birthday. I promised I'd keep bringing her flowers and coming to see both him and mom... I feel terrible for stopping and eventually forgetting the date."  
Jace looked to Iris sincerely "That's why somewhere in my mind, I _knew_ there was something important today. I got it crossed with our date." He put his head in his hands "Geez, I wish I could take back all those promises I broke..."  
Iris sighed. "It's not you... I think you've just got a selfish partner."  
Jace glanced at her. She continued "I started the argument last night, and I shouldn't have."  
"Iris, we both acted stupid last night... Besides, it's not like we screamed and yelled at each other, we just batted it around a little then went to bed."  
"Yeah, but I was the crazy chick who kept it going and wouldn't listen to you. I mean, we never argue, so I guess I took it way too hard." Iris grabbed the calendar gently and looked at it. "..."  
"I'm sorry-..." They both said at once. They looked at each other, then chuckled.  
Jace remained silent after that. He looked away. Iris put her hand on his leg, and he looked at her in confusion. She looked down at the floor for a moment, then looked at Jace "Why don't we visit them today then?"  
Jace blinked, then smiled. "I... I think that's a great idea..."  
"It's the least I can do for acting like a Mad Scrub..." Iris smiled weakly.  
Jace simply grabbed her hand. He began "This can be our date... Can't it?"  
"Of course..." Iris kissed him, then pulled away. "And there will be no more arguing, and never forget that."


End file.
